Friday's Festival blog: Downtown fun resumes after rain

Press Photo/Katie BarnesJohn Ehlkey holds his girlfriend, Melissa Limber, under the Festival information tent near the Calder area during a thunderstorm on Friday. Limber was nervous about the storm, and the rains were so heavy that several Festival performances were postponed.

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Press entertainment reporters will blog from Grand Rapids' Festival of the Arts the entire weekend. The freshest items will appear at the top. So come back to mlive.com/grpress to keep up with what's happening at Festival.

Grand Rapids' biggest street party of the summer suspended outdoor entertainment at 3 p.m. when the National Weather Service issued a severe thunderstorm warning until 4:30 p.m.

Shortly afterward, organizers began toweling off, though live entertainment didn't return to Calder Stage for another 45 minutes.

"We're drying out," said Allison Hoekstra-Reynolds, co-chair of Festival 2008. "It took us a while to squeege it off."

Organizers are hopeful good weather continues, but they're keeping one eye on the weather.

"We're planning on being open the rest of the night," Hoekstra-Reynolds said. "It looks clear."

Fred Bivins

Award for the reward maker

Longtime festival volunteer Fred Bivins has been making and engraving the base of the "Spirit of Festival Award" ever since it was first presented five years ago, but when asked to deliver this year's award minus the winner's name, he said he wasn't suspicious.

Since he is no longer board president he isn't privy to the winner's name.

But when Festival co-chair Allison Hoekstra-Reynolds started describing this year's winner at Friday's award ceremony, Bivins recognized himself instantly.

"There aren't many who've been involved since the '70s and I'm the only male former board president," Bivins explained. The award is presented in honor of longtime volunteer Diane I. Casey, who received the first award posthumously in 2003.

"The irony is Diane would never have singled out one person because she knew the value of the sheer number of volunteers that it takes. So I accept this award on behalf of all the volunteers because we all deserve it."

Piece by piece
The Ideal Collective artists' co-op is bringing an ambitious project to Festival.

They're cutting up a five-foot-by-seven-foot mixed-media piece and selling fragments as $12 bracelets in the art-sales tent. The local group will eventually contact patrons and try to reassemble the piece bracelet-by-bracelet at an exhibition in the future. Since fragments have been sold to people in London, Australia, Germany and elsewhere, that'll be tough.

The group has sold similar bracelets in previous years, but has not yet tried reassembly.

"This will be the virgin attempt at putting it back together," said creative director Erwin Erkfitz.

Singin' in the rain
One performer's washout is another's success. As Friday's rains shut down outdoor stages, singer-songwriter Mike Tatu saw his audience in the tented Outer Fringe Stage swell with people seeking shelter. Didn't hurt that many of his lyrics were about rain, either.

"It was perfect for my songs," the 32-year-old from Grand Rapids said.

As the severe weather intensified, the tent threatened to blow over, leading many in the audience to leap up and help fortify its edges (further proof that Festival is a volunteer-driven event) and giving Tatu more fodder for stage banter.

"I'm bringing the house down!" he declared.

Driven indoors Hey, whatever gets people in the door to see Festival's Regional Arts exhibit is OK by Fred Bivins, even if that means a bit of the ol' liquid sunshine.

"As long as people don't go home," said Bivins, longtime Festival volunteer and exhibition chair.

The juried exhibition runs during Festival hours (even rainy ones) in the old art museum on Ionia and features 383 works. Bivins said there was an increase in foot traffic during the storm on Friday, though he'd prefer the show to attract visitors on its own merits.

"I would like it that they come because it's cool in here," Bivins said. Cool as in comfortable, or cool as in awesome?

"Both!" he said.

Popcorn booth is No. 1
In its second year at Festival, the popcorn booth sponsored by Kinney Grange 754 popped up as Food Booth No. 1, after being at the opposite end of the food chain last year as No. 25.

Luanna Swainston, chairman of the booth, said the booth didn't get much traffic last year on the far end of Calder Plaza.

Festival coordinators moved them to the high traffic Monroe Center next to Circle Stage and sales have picked up, Swainston said.

Proceeds go to the Grange's "Words for Thirds" program that purchases dictionaries for third-graders.

A barefoot advantage
Two hours after their scheduled 3 p.m. show time on the Calder Stage, the Pacific Island Dancers were still waiting patiently for clearance to take the stage for a belated performance after the storm had passed. Why could they perform on a damp stage when other dance troupes couldn't? They dance barefoot.

"This has happened to us the last three years," said Eileen Wigen as volunteers used squeegees to clear water from the uncovered stage. "We've danced in the rain."

At 5:19 p.m., the troupe of about two dozen dancers finally took Festival's biggest stage. The only down side? Only about three dozen devoted fans who endured the long rain delay were there to see them.

Lookin' good after more than a century
Despite the slogan "Looking good for 120 years" on their T-shirts, Meshia Williams and Leslee Fritz were looking a bit harried at the height of the thunderstorm Friday afternoon as they struggled to hold the information tent together on Monroe Center.

The T-shirts, worn by 16 information booth volunteers on Friday, advertise the 120th anniversary of the Grand Rapids Area Chamber of Commerce, where Fritz is marketing opportunities account manager and Williams is an event coordinator.

"I'm a bit disappointed that more people haven't commented on my shirt," Williams said as she stood on a table to secure the sides of the tent against a wet gale.

When the rain began about 3 p.m. Friday, Elly Bainbridge of Hudsonville sought refuge in the Festival Store tent with her two children, Max, 12 and Happy, 8.

Both kids already had printed a pair of T-shirts in the printmaking tent, and Happy had a creation from the Mad Hatter.

"We always come on Friday of Festival, and we always get rained on," Bainbridge said. "It's just a little water."

Press Photo/Katy BatdorffAnna Dood and Kelli Hook play in a puddle when rain postponed Festival of the Arts on Friday afternoon in downtown Grand Rapids.

And then the rains came
The skies opened up about 3 p.m., forcing Festival organizers to go into "suspend mode," canceling performances on all six outdoor stages until the storms pass.

Indoor performances and the regional art exhibit at the old Grand Rapids Art Museum on Pearl Street NW will continue as scheduled, as well as free admission to the new Grand Rapids Art Museum at 101 Monroe Center NW.

Sister city adds to art display
Remarks of approval, both in Spanish and English, echoed through the air conditioned corridors of the old Grand Rapids Art Museum.

Festival attendees headed to the museum for the opening of the Sister Cities Exhibition. Featured Mexican artist Luis Macias welcomed the crowd in Spanish and broken English to his gallery which was divided into three different provisions, each with different themes.

Visitors eyes immediately looked to the wall that was host to "Trafycantes de Suenos" or "Merchant of Dreams," a series of pictures that depict the detail children's dreams.

"He asks kids what they dream about and tries to capture it in his work," said Arturo Armijo, of the of the GRSCI Zapopan Committee. "Every piece of work is a separate dream."

"I talked to 17 children, boys and girls. They were very orderly in their questions and very thoughtful about what they wanted to share," Macias said in Spanish.

The exhibition took four straight days to complete. Those who participated in the project were forced to pick just 22 pieces out of the available 50.

"Less than half could be installed," said assistant to the city manager Jose Reyna. "It was really tough."

Mission trip students play in rain

Press Photo/Katie BarnesAmy Navjaro laughs while taking cover under her umbrella Friday afternoon during Festival. The rain began falling about 3 p.m.

A little rain didn't discourage a group of 14 young people from Ft. Morgan, Colo., who gathered for a picture in the drizzle between outbursts.

The high school and middle school students from Ft. Morgan Assembly of God Church are here on a mission trip to do some construction and yard work for Daystar Ministries Assembly of God in Grand Rapids, said organizer Katy Driesenga.

As others in the group sought shelter under an awning, Shawna Dietrich, 13, and Tristina Kage, 13, danced in the shower.

Youth Symphony plays with more than wind instruments
The wet stuff isn't the only weather-related challenge facing performers at Festival of the Arts. Wind is no fun either.

Grand Rapids Youth Symphony and Classical Orchestra, scheduled to perform at 2:15 p.m. Friday on the Calder Stage, managed to play most of their program before rain began about 3 p.m.

But the breeze was blowing big time.

"Music was being blown all over the place. It was horrible. Players were lurching for their music," said conductor John Varineau. "I don't think there was any more than half the orchestra playing half the time."

The Youth Symphony managed to finish a piece just before the heavens opened up, and Varineau halted the performance with one more 10-minute piece to go.

Still, it was better than what the weather did to the orchestra last year.

Dayna Groothius and her daughter performed as a singing duet at 1:35 p.m. on City Stage.

Dayna, a Christian-Gospel-contemporary artist, established herself as a vocalist in the 1980s.

"She once performed 'You'll Never Walk Alone' with Wayne Newton, and he was literally crying," said Dayna's mother, Joyce Harris, 69, of Fruitport.

Taylor took first place at last year's "Grandville Idol" competition.

The two sang sing-along songs in addition to the Tina Turner rendition that included fun-loving hits such as "Dancing Queen" by ABBA and "The Best of Both Worlds" by Hannah Montana.

"Dayna is known for singing mostly Christian contemporary music, but they're here to have a little fun," Harris said.

Yelling for your dinnerWhat's all that noise? Volunteers at the Kenowa Hills Band Boosters food booth know how to muster up enthusiasm while toiling away in the food prep zone. Whenever a customer orders a combo platter -- with shrimp "on the barbie," garlic bread and fresh-squeezed lemonade -- the high school students join in a rallying cry, which is admittedly sometimes hard to decipher.

Love it or lose itSelf-described "Festival brat" and second generation volunteer Mindy Jacobson, 27, literally has devoted her life to Festival, and she wouldn't mind a little more company.

The volunteer -- who was born to Festival parents and helmed her first Festival committee at age 17 -- said the event is badly in need of more helping hands and donations. "We're a little short on volunteers," said Jacobson, while monitoring the Swing'n Art booth, an adult art tent founded by her parents.

"It's hard to find people to work for free," she laughed. Those interested in volunteering for Festival 2009 can sign up at festivalofthearts.org.

Hot times in the cityFriday's early afternoon heat wave served as artistic inspiration for popular Grand Rapids chanteuse Mary Rademacher and her backing band. Rademacher was performing early afternoon at the Clock stage, when she made a quip about the oppressive humidity. "We're going to sing a song about the day," she said, and launched into an upbeat rendition of Cole Porter, "Too Darn Hot."

Question of the dayFestival goers who look 18 years and older likely got used to hearing the same question, on repeat: "Are you a registered voter?"

Petition signature gatherers were out in full force Friday, canvassing Festival grounds and asking registered voters to sign petitions on issues including stem cell research and salary cuts for politicians.

Not everyone was excited about the attention. "We've been asked four times, and we just got here," said Jill Dykema, 32, of Grand Rapids.

So you think you can dance?
FOX-TV may have thought otherwise, but check out local dancers Raymond Love and Ericka Faasen at 7 p.m. Saturday on the Calder Stage and judge for yourself.

Love, a local dancer and Hip-Hop instructor at the School of Grand Rapids Ballet Company, was featured Wednesday in FOX-TV's reality show, "So You Think You Can Dance?"

Unfortunately, they were cut, but Love called it a great experience to get that far.

"I loved the opportunity to be around so many talented dancers and choreographers," Love said. "It was scary, intense and exhausting, but definitely worth it to have the opportunity to be in front of those judges and have my choreography recognized."

Love and Faasen will dance their audition piece -- a last-minute addition to the School of Grand Rapids Ballet Company's Senior Trainee performance at Festival of the Arts.

Festival of the winds
By 12:30 p.m., Friday's wind gusts -- reaching 30-40 mph -- had claimed their first victim: Part of Festival's balloon tent.

The blustery conditions blew in one side of the tent on Ottawa Avenue NW shortly after opening time, causing quite the ruckus.

"The wind was blowing real hard and knocked a table over," said Alex Castro, a longtime Festival volunteer who was staffing the tent with his wife, Mary.

The couple even refrained Friday from inflating many balloons (sold for $1 each) ahead of time for fear they'd be blown into the skies over Grand Rapids.